Monday, November 30, 2015

I Corinthians 13:13 tells us that LOVE echoes into eternity. It's the only thing that we do that will
last for eternity. “Three things will continue forever: faith, hope,
and LOVE. And the greatest of these is LOVE.”

People will forget all our work, our wealth, our hobbies, our trophies,
our awards, etc. The only thing that will last forever is the LOVE we
show for Him and for others.

Sunday, November 29, 2015

“Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8

God
is more interested in our love for Him and our love for others than he
is in our trying to be perfect. It is impossible to
be perfect. No matter how much we try, we will fail at perfection. It
simply isn't possible to be perfect but it is possible to love.

Yet,
we all strive to be perfect at something. Such as our jobs, in our churches, with our hobbies, in our academics and many other areas. These are all good things and we
can be great at some and not so great at others. Yes, we should all
strive to do our best but the Bible tells us that “No matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.”1 Cor. 13:3

Nothing can take the place

of love and relationships!

A picture taken of my Aunt and Uncle taken December 2013. They have always made me feel loved and adored.

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. Philippians 4:8

We need to remember that everyone has problems, fears, anxiety,
betrayal, and this list is endless. No one is immune to difficult
circumstances. No one has the monopoly on problems and issues in this
world either. There is enough to go around. We can't control the
difficult circumstances that come into our life and we can't always control how we wear our
woes.

woes

definition

1.grievousdistress,affliction,ortrouble.

All
the positive thinking in the world will not work to help overcome the
wounds life may bring but God can heal us in ways we don't expect.

When
in the midst of conflict or problems in my own life, God sends reminders to me of
all that is good. For example, I can hang around one of my grand kids who
hugs me so tenderly and tells me they love me and all is well in my
world. My husband and I have moments when the young adults at church
will say or do something for us that our hearts become overwhelmed with
joy. God has provided nieces and nephews in our life that lift us up
just by hanging around them. We thank God constantly for the sweet
relationships He gives us each day. My husband and I remind ourselves to take time to
reflect on all the good that God has provided and we want to wear our
gratefulness. Is our life perfect? Of course not, but most days it feels
pretty close because of the relationships God gives to us who become
the hands and feet of Jesus in our life.

My prayer today is to thank God for all that is good today and to trust Him with all that is not...

Monday, November 16, 2015

Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel, and the man was very rich. He had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. And he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. The name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigail. And she was a woman of good understanding and beautiful appearance; but the man was harsh and evil in his doings. He was of the house of Caleb. I Samuel 25:2-3

Abigail was intelligent and beautiful but her husband Nabal was a fool and cruel according to these verses. How many times have we seen two people married where one is delightful and the other grates our nerves?

David was still on the run at this time from King Saul and was in the area where Nabal had his sheep so they protected them from any harm. It was customary at that time to be compensated for the protection of your flock but instead Nabal was rude, critical and refused to do anything for David and his men.

David was upset and set out to go up against Nabal for his foolishness. Abigail met him on the road with her servants and compensation for David and his men's protection of their flock without her husband knowing. When she told her husband the next day about what she had done he was so upset he had a heart attack and died. David found out what happened to Abigails husband and asked her to be his wife and they were married.

This is a great love story but more than that it is about a woman who had the courage to do right and God blessed!

This picture was taken while visiting Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania, October 2014.

Thursday, November 12, 2015

for the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over, that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.” Joshua 4:23-24

God performed a miracle at the Red Sea and at Jordan by removing the waters so the Israeli nation could cross over on dry land.

Then Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the children of Israel, one man from every tribe; and Joshua said to them: “Cross over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and each one of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ Then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever.” Joshua 4:4-7

Today we have many ways to share God's goodness and blessings. For me personally I have my photos to always remind me of His blessings. I love to look at them and smile at all the good times of those I love even if they are no longer with me. My prayer journals where I have marked answered prayers is another reminder. I write about His blessing in my blogs to share His blessings with others.

We really need those reminders of blessings when we are under attack emotionally, spiritually, financially, etc. When the darkness tries to take us we have all the blessings of the past to remind us of the hope for all our tomorrows.....

This picture was taken by my niece Theresa at Sanibel Island, August 2014. Her photos are a work of art!